IMPORTANT NOTE: THIS PAGE WILL BE UPDATED IN NOVEMBER, 2009 AFTER ACCEPTANCE NOTICES ARE SENT TO THOSE INVITED TO PRESENT AT THE 2010 WESTERN MEETING.

Your patience is very much appreciated.

(Faculty
and Fellows: Please contact your respective societies for instructions…DO
NOT REGISTER on the student and resident site.)

November, 2008

Greetings
Everyone:

Congratulations
on your invitation to present at the Western Regional Meetings in Carmel/Monterey. We are delighted to offer the convenience of on-line
registration again this year. All students and residents must pre-register
for the conference in order to participate. Have your credit card handy. You will receive
an instant, printable receipt. All of the activities listed where a meal
is mentioned are included in your registration fee.

Among our
conference activities this year:

Inter
Societies Welcoming Cocktail Party held at the Carmel Women's Club
Wednesday January 28th 5:30-7:00 p.m. If you
arrive on Wednesday afternoon, you are encouraged to join in a faculty "schmooze" in Carmel. (Cocktails and light repast). Free shuttle service is provided.

Joint Plenary Sessions I and II Thursday January 29th 8:30 a.m.-11:45 p.m. and 1:45-4:45 p.m., respectively, held in Carmel at the Pacific Repertory Theater, Golden Bough. All participating societies. (Great place to meet faculty from all sponsoring medical societies and hear the best of the best presentations of the Western Meeting.)

Additionally, the Western Association of Physicians invites interested students and residents to learn about "Evolutionary Pathobiology of Atherosclerosis (Thrombosis, Inflammation and Lipids)" from 2-5 PM on Wednesday, January 27th at the Sunset Center – Carpenter Hall.

You
are invited to select one breakfast in our "Breakfast
with the Investigator Series" on Friday, OR Saturday morning. There are three topics each day
from which you may select the one you will attend. Please select
only one of them on Friday, OR
Saturday (when prompted in the registration process below). Seating for each of the six options is limited to twenty students or residents only.

"Posters,
Pizza, and Beer Session," featuring 20 student subspecialty award-winning
posters. This will be held on Thursday evening January 29th, 6:00-8:00
p.m. at the Monterey Beach Hotel. Many faculty members from the
various participating medical societies also attend this event. Your guests are welcome to attend this activity at no additional charge.

The Ninth Annual Residents' Luncheon chaired by Dr. Brian Jonas. Residents will host a Residency Application Panel for Medical Students, Saturday, January 31st, 12:30- 2:30 p.m., Carpenter Hall, Sunset Center in Carmel. Students will have the rare opportunity to meet current residents in the Western Region and get answers to those questions you all have.

Paul R. Epstein, M.D., M.P.H. is Associate Director of the Center for Health and the Global Environment at Harvard Medical School (http://chge.med.harvard.edu) and is a medical doctor trained in tropical public health. Paul has worked in medical, teaching and research capacities in Africa, Asia and Latin America and in 1993, coordinated an eight-part series on Health and Climate Change for the British medical journal, Lancet. He has worked with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the National Academy of Sciences (NAS), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to assess the health impacts of climate change and develop health applications of climate forecasting and remote sensing.

Dr. Epstein also served as a reviewer for the Health chapter of the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment and coordinated Climate Change Futures: Health, Ecological and Economic Dimensions, an international project with Swiss Re and the United Nations Development Programme assessing the new risks and opportunities presented by a changing climate.

He is currently coordinating a Cat Modeling Forum with A.I.G., Lloyd's of London and other insurers and insurance brokers, facilitating integration of dynamic and statistical models for better risk assessment and reduction. Dr. Epstein is also preparing a report that examines the "stabilization wedges" through the lens of health and ecological safety. Paul received recognition for his contributions to the work of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2007.

HOTEL RESERVATIONS:

As January 7, 2009, Beach Resort Monterey will accept guestroom reservations via Email at Liz@montereybeachresort.com or via phone at 800-242-8627. Please mention that you are part of the Western Student Medical Research Forum 2009 or WSMRF2009 to receive the group rate. Reservation will be accepted until January 15, 2009. January 30th is sold out.

As of January 13: There is a small block of rooms available at $135 per night at the Embassy Suites Hotel (very close to the Monterey Beach Hotel). This includes a full breakfast everyday and free shuttle to the Monterey Beach Hotel and to/from the Monterery Airport. YOU MUST CALL Serena (831) 241-9116 by THIS FRIDAY, JANUARY 16 and mention Western Student Medical Reseach Forum to get this rate.

Please remember toupload your Power-point presentation by the January 23, 2009 DEADLINE. Here is the link:www.glastonburyinc.com, click on the link UPLOAD CENTER AT THE TOP, select
"For Doctors Conference Presenters, " and follow the prompts. If you have questions you may contactops@glastonburyinc.com or by phone at: 831-583-0880.

TRANSPORTATION: If you
plan to fly to the meeting, you may wish to check out www.studentuniverse.com for deeply discounted airfares. Ticket purchases on this site are limited
to students (residents included), and faculty. The airport code for
Monterey is MRY. The airport code for San Jose is SJC. For
those of you who will fly into San Jose, it takes about 1 1/2 hours to
make the drive to Monterey. Here is a link to a reasonable shuttle service
and their schedules http://www.montereyairbus.com/. (The charge is approximately $30 round trip and reservations are strongly suggested.) For
those of you plan to drive, parking at the Monterey Beach Hotel is free with validation.

We wish
you a peaceful and joyous holiday season and look forward to meeting you at the end of January.